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Page 117
merchant train, and that was a far different matter.
The two who had brought the word of Alinor's availability pointed out that no new ships were in and that there would be no traveling merchants for some days. The longer they remained this close to the keep, the greater their danger. Any day a hunting party might come into the woods. Besides, taking the lady would put silver and gold coin into their hands. There would not be the additional terrible danger of having to sell the goods stolen from the merchant. When they had their ransom, they could flee far, where no one would know them or question them. Gold and silver pieces were all alike; they could not be traced. They would not hurt the lady.
The argument took time, but the men were not concerned. Their position had been carefully chosen so that lookouts could command both roads leading out of Roselynde Town. To return to the keep, Alinor and her party would need to come either by the one road or across the open country just south of the little wood. By the time they had been sighted by the lookouts, the more adventurous souls had won. The lady's party was outnumbered better than two to one. They were between her and the town, where presumably the rich merchants would come to her aid. The short evening of autumn was already darkening into night. Everything was to their advantage. The outlaw band mounted on their stolen horses and set quarrels into their wound bows.

 
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